At the interface of roots of plants and soil there exists a region which can be abundant with beneficial microbes comprising basically of bacteria, archaea, fungi, protozoa (amoebae, flagellates, ciliates) and yeasts which live in a symbiotic food relationship with each other. Without going into great detail concerning the roles of all parties, that symbiotic food relationship or microbial nutrient cycle has great benefit to the soil and plants. Certain bacteria and archaea receive nutrition from substances released from the roots of plants, those bacteria and archaea are in turn consumed by protozoa which release substances, in the form of waste, which provide nutrients to the roots of plants, thus creating a nutrient cycle. There is also evidence that applications of compost tea may help suppress plant pathogens. The inventor has done considerable microscopic research on soil and compost microbes. The device and method invented implements the creation of a functional microbial nutrient cycling consortia to be applied to soil and plants, thus initiating or boosting the beneficial microbes at the root/soil interface.
The word compost shall be used henceforth herein to mean compost, vermicompost or both. The operating principle and design of the invented device may be applied to virtually any size of water vessel with adjustment of pipe and diffuser size and of air pump capacity. There are various compost tea making devices being sold, which operate by blowing bubbles into the body of water or use a water pump to circulate the body of water. This device differs entirely by actively circulating the body of water through pipes with use of air alone while concurrently infusing the water with oxygen by way of diffusers secured within the pipes and diffusers submerged in the water. There are several configurations of the device which the user may employ. One configuration has compost placed in free suspension in the body of water with circulating water being returned so as to break the surface tension of the body of water. Another configuration uses a mesh extractor container into which compost is placed and into which the circulating water empties so as to provide the option of compost containment. A third configuration allows the continued use of the mesh extractor container with one or more diffusers placed into it with the compost with the circulating water bypassing the mesh extractor container.
The invented device and method has several benefits when compared to other compost tea devices presently on the market. Other devices for sale and known to the inventor which are air operated simply blow air into the body of water or blow air into an extractor container or both without actuating circulation. Although some of these have claims of actively circulating the water, the inventor has observed no way to measure such circulation. The invented device and method invented easily demonstrates and measures circulation.
Other devices for sale and known to the inventor which do circulate the water do so with water pumps which potentially damage the microbes being extracted with each pass through the pump impellers and the effects on raising the dissolved oxygen are limited compared to those of an air pump.
Judging from the stated recommendations for using many other compost tea devices on the market, the average recommended operational times are limited to twenty-four to thirty-six hours. One might conclude that this time limitation is based on the device's inability to maintain the minimum dissolved oxygen content of 6 PPM (parts per million) necessary to sustain aerobic microbial life. The device and method invented has demonstrated the ability to maintain a dissolved oxygen level of 8.8 PPM to 9.8 PPM in the 50 gallon device configuration operated in excess of 48 hours when using 4% compost, 0.75% molasses, 0.063% fish hydrolysate and 0.25% kelp meal in water with a temperature of approximately 19 degrees Centigrade and having a beginning TDS (total dissolved solids) of 21 PPM. The inventor feels this demonstrates the superior efficiency of the device to raise and maintain the level of dissolved oxygen.
The inventor has sought from the onset of research and development to create a compost tea making device and method which is affordable by homeowners and small farm owners and because of the design simplicity he will accomplish this.